Rodgers: No class from Arsenal in Suarez pursuit

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has accused Arsenal of lacking class as they continue their bid to lure striker Luis Suarez from Anfield.

Arsenal's offer of £40 million and £1 was designed to trigger a release clause in Suarez's contract, yet it seems as if Liverpool are not obliged to sell the striker to the North London club for that price after all.

While Wenger has hinted he has not given up hope of signing the Uruguay striker before the end of this month, the comments of Liverpool boss Rodgers may well rattle the Frenchman, who thrives on decency when negotiating big money transfers.

"I have to admit I was surprised by their bid of £40 million and £1," Rodgers told reporters. "I always associated Arsenal as a club with class, so there was a wee bit of a game there.

"We will just move on and do our own work, and the message is constant - we do not want to sell. I think there will become a point when they will understand that.

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"They have an interest and put that interest in with two bids that is nowhere near where what Luis would be worth. That is within their right, there is a market for players, but our message is constant."

Rodgers has now admitted the moment when Liverpool may have considered selling Suarez has now passed, as agreeing a deal for the striker so close to the start of the season would not be in the club's best interests.

"There is always a timeline where you would never sell and we are at that stage now because we're so close to the beginning of the season," added the Liverpool boss. "We are focused on Luis being here, getting in a couple more and ready to be challenging at the top of the table.

"As time goes on I am gaining more confidence that he will stay and the owners have been brilliant. Maybe if it was another club where they needed the money it could be a different story.

"They have been first class through the whole process and that fills me with confidence that they are in no hurry to sell. They understand that they are trying to build. There has been lots of talk but the board have been very strong."

Wenger responded by insisting his club have "acted properly" in their attempts to sign Suarez, but he refused to be drawn on additional bids for the striker.

"We try to act properly, we always try to act properly, but the transfer is always an agreement between three parties. We have always done that," he said on his pursuit of Suarez when pressed by reporters after Arsenal's Emirates Cup defeat against Galatasaray on Sunday.